MCR Week 4 Final Scene

I would be lying if I said that this month was easy. I have never worked so hard in school in my life. I can honestly say that all the stress and late night were worth it. I've become a stronger and more confident modeler and the skills I obtained these past four weeks are tremendous. This final week we had to compose a scene with all of our models and 3 additional ones using all the skills we had acquired up to now.

I can also say that this week is a milestone for me because I was finally able to do a fourth model. It was all due to better time management, planning and getting better with Maya and Z-Brush. I think my final scene is a very worthy effort and I hope that my instructor feels the same. This month has taught me a lot about myself and my goals. I am determined more than ever to get a firm grasp on these concepts. I am looking forward to my next class.

MCR Week 3 Still Life With Digital Sculpting

This week is an exciting week for me because we are diving into Z-Brush for the first time. I've been waiting for this since I started Full Sail. Even though it is not an extensive lesson in the software I plan on getting a lot out of it. Again we had to choose three objects to model but this time we had to import the .obj into Z-Brush for projection and sculpting in some details. It took some time to navigate comfortably through the software and once I got the hang of it and using masks help me hone in on some things.

I really liked this week and feel myself getting better. I had to stay up all night to get my assignment done but that was because my job had me spinning too. I learned about normal maps and its benefits. Overall my excitement level has remained high and I feel very proud of my work so far.

MCR Week 2 Still Life

I thought last week was tough, but this second week has got my head spinning. We had to choose three model to create from reference photos. They were mostly 3/4 view and we had to get them as close as identical as we could. This would have been easy with more usable references but these were some complex models to a newcomer like me. We also started UVing our models also this week. One major lesson I learned was to add edge loops after UVing the model. That was a nightmare to UV all those surfaces.The models I chose were to help me with my weaknesses in areas like curves and scale.

We had the option to model a fourth object for extra credit but my time was vastly short. Between working a full time job with deadlines and homework it was impossible for me to start and finish fourth. Maya still exhibits a personality of its own but I am getting used to it now. I use the Edge loop tool a lot more along with the Knife tool. Modeling is still quite challenging but I will press on and get better.

MCR Week 1 Model Large Props

This week start a new chapter in my path to become a character animator. This month is MCR (Model Creation). Our first assignment was to make four large 3D models to populate a room. This was definitely a hectic week. I'm still a little shaky with Maya but I think all it would take is more practice. I learned a lot through our Concept Share site with all the critiques and advice. I started using the quick keys more and can see how it can make things a lot faster. This week was all about experimenting and I should start to lock down a work flow next week. My models turned out ok and I'm feeling a bit more confident.

Art 01 Week 3 Light and Value

This week's assignment 3H was based on light and value. This by far was my favorite week because I am a traditional artist and I love the process of polishing a sketch. Sometimes it is hit or miss, but worth it in the end. I chose to compose and sketch this image because I rarely render plastic and metal materials. This was a supposed to be more of a challenge to my skill level than just ordinary homework. I am satisfied with how it turned out and if I had enough time, I could have honed it in more. In learning about value, I quickly associated it as my color palette to black and white. My brain can work better when I think of colors. With the month winding down I am happy with learning new things and ways to approach my art.

Art 01 Week 2 Defining Space

This week I really had to focus on composition and organizational lines. These were things I was familiar with already, but I don't mind any refreshers. Especially when drawing still life which I haven't done in years. This also helped me with my fundamentals which I readily admit I do not always adhere to. I still get the results I want, but it's good to have a base to fall back on when I get stuck in the design process. Assignment 2F was great because I got to loosely sketch in my project, which is my favorite part, and show its plum lines to keep my proportion and scale in harmony.

Art 01 Week 1 Composition

This week is the start of Fundamentals of Art 1. It starts with getting us more familiar with composition and the principles of design. Using these principles I saw my work start to show a more interesting view. I can see how things can become more engaging and dynamic using the Golden Rule and the Rule of Thirds. Our first week of assignments 1E and 1F had a mixture of traditional art sketching and photo composition using those rules. This assignment was fun and it taught me how to direct the art movement in the audience's eye. I am looking forward to future assignments.